Allergic Rhinitis Asthma

Global Initiative for Asthma, GINA, (2017) has provided global strategy guidelines for the best management and prevention for asthma. In the report GINA writes that a shared-care approach is associated with improved outcomes. It requires the development of a partnership

Bunting BA, Cranor CW. The Asheville project: long-term clinical, humanistic, and economic outcomes of community-based medication therapy management program for asthma. J Am Pharm Assoc 2006;46:133-147

Asthma is a significant public health problem to both economic and human costs. The Department of Health still needs to work with health-care providers and experts in the academic field of asthma to access a better understanding of the trends of asthma prevalence in adults and children, to ensure that initiatives to address the disease are targeted as effectively as

Asthma is a disease that affects the respiratory system; it is marked by spasms in the bronchi of the lungs causing difficulty in breathing. Checking medical history is a way to diagnostically check for asthma. A patient with a recurrent cough, who wheezes, has shortness of breath and/or chest tightness could be a victim of asthma. Symptoms that occur variable with asthma upon exposure to allergens or irritants, worsen at night and/or also respond to appropriate asthma therapies are suggestive of asthma. A positive family history of asthma, atopic disease or an allergy to rhinitis can be helpful in identifying a patient with asthma. During the history check, providers often ask patients about their living environment

Ref: ([Guideline] Expert Panel Report 3 (EPR-3): Guidelines for the Diagnosis and Management of Asthma-Summary Report 2007. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2007 Nov. 120(5 Suppl):S94-138.)

Asthma treatment is consistent with care along a continuum which may change at any time to accommodate the individual’s current symptoms. The clinical based guidelines consist of step by step guidelines with varying treatments arranged by age and organized by the severity and the addition of pharmacological therapies (NAEPP, 2007).

Nonallergic rhinitis is the term used to describe a combination of symptoms resembling an allergic reaction that cannot be linked to a specific cause. It is a very common condition, with as much as 25% of the adult population exhibiting symptoms. Oftentimes, the condition can only be confirmed after the possibility of other medical issues has been ruled out.

Asthma is a chronic disease of the lungs that affects the airways and causes them to become very swollen and sensitive to the air that you breathe. With this disease you can get what is called an asthma attack, this is where your airways become narrower, making it difficult to breathe. You may notice that someone is having an asthma attack if the person begins wheezing, getting a tight chest/ chest pains, breathing problems, and coughing. There are different types of asthma depending on your age and what causes you asthma to get worse. There is Child-Onset Asthma, Adult-Onset Asthma, Exercise-Induced Asthma, Cough-Induced Asthma, Occupational Asthma, Nocturnal Asthma, and Steroid-Resistant Asthma. Asthma

There are many uncertainties when it comes to the prevalence of asthma some studies suggests that the prevalence of asthma has decreased , while others still suggests that is increasing. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to determine temporal changes over the past 20 years in the prevalence of asthma and allergic rhinitis based on adult population of Italy (Marco, Cappa, Accordini, Rava, Antonicelli, Bortolami, Braggion, Bugiani, Casali, Cazzoletti, Cerveri, Foise, Girardi, Locatelli, Marcon, Marinoni, Panico, Pirinae, Villani, Zanolin, Verlato, 2012: 883&884). The main findings are as follows. 1) The asthma epidemic is not over in Italy. 2) The increase in asthma does not reflect only changes in diagnostic and treatment practices.

Nutritional imbalances and chronic inflammation may go hand in hand. The more we learn, the more we realize that we really are what we eat.

The pathophysiology of Asthma includes inflammation of the airway. The way in which this works is from an irritant which can include dust, pollen, cedar, or cat hair. When a reaction occurs, the airways become inflamed and narrow. The narrowing occurs because once the inflammatory response is triggered by an irritant, histamines, immunoglobulin E antibodies, and leukotrienes are released. Because of this, mucous production occurs. Since the bronchioles are inflamed and narrow, breathing becomes difficult. Wheezing sounds can be heard due to the lack of air being able to easily move in and out of the narrowed bronchioles.

The prevalence of allergic diseases and asthma are increasing worldwide, particularly in low and middle income countries. Moreover, the complexity and severity of allergic diseases, including asthma, continue to increase especially in children and young adults, who are bearing the greatest burden of these trends. In order to address this major global challenge that threatens health and economies alike it is important to have a global action plan that includes partnerships involving different stakeholders from low-, middle-, and high-income

Ingemansson, M., Wettermark, B., Jonsson, E. W., Bredgård, M., Jonsson, M., Hedlin, G., & Kiessling, A. (2012). Adherence to guidelines for drug treatment of asthma in children: potential for improvement in Swedish primary care. Quality In Primary Care, 20(2), 131-139. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22824566

One of the major public health problems facing Australia today is Asthma. It is disturbing that there has been an apparent increase in its prevalence and severity, and increased rates of hospital admissions. (E.J.Comino, 1996) For the diagnosed patient, the degree to which he or she suffers is related to severity of the condition, compliance with recommendations by medical experts, the immediate environment and the effectiveness of education programs.

One of the largest barriers to the management of asthma amongst underserved children, is access to a primary care physician (Greek, Kieckhefer, Kim, Joesch, & Baydar, 2006). Since asthma is a chronic disease; like most, it requires constant care, control and management of symptoms to prevent exacerbation of the disease. According to a study conducted by Moorman et al., between the years 2001-2003, minority children compared to white children, had a much greater chance of being treated in an emergency room rather than being treated by a primary care physician. The marked increase of emergency room visits led to regular hospitalized stays, higher mortality rates, and the use of short-acting medication opposed to a long-term systemic use of anti-inflammatory